Brick-machine.



W. P. GRATH.

BRICK MACHINE.

nPPLxcATloN man AUG. 10. 1914.

Patented July 25, 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET l.

' W. P. GBATH.

BRICK MACHINE.

APPLICATION men AUG. l0. 1914.

1,192,057, Patented July 25, 1916.

W. P. GRATH.

BRICK MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED Aue. Io, Ism.

Patented July 25, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

IIIIIW Iii INI I IUI W, P, GRATH.

BRICK MACHINE.

. ,APPLICATION FILED AUG. I0. I9I4.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

Patentd Juy 25, 19H3.

rn srarnsra WALTER P. GRATH, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

BRICK-MACHINE.

Application filed August 10, 1914., Serial No. 856,107.

T0 all whom 'it may concern Be it known that I, VALTER P. GRATH, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful 1mproveinent in rick-hflachines, of Which the following is a specification.-

This invention relates to machines of the type shown in my Patent No. 791,262, dated May 30, 1905, for pressing bricks from comparatively dry clay, but it is not restricted to pressing dry clay bricks.

The object of this invention is to provide for the rapid escape during the pressing operation of thc air that permeates clay powder and loose clay, and thereby to enable the speed of operation of the machine to be increased.

A further object of theinvention is an arrangement of parts whereby the plungers and molds can be readily changed, and the moving parts can be removed and replaced Without disniantlingthe entire machine.

Other objects of the invention are to reduce vibration of the machine and its moving parts, to equalize the stresses on the vario-iis parts, and to reduce the number of parts and the overall dimensions of the Inachine.

The invention consists in a machine for accomplishing the foregoing and similar objects. l The invention further consists in the parts and arrangements of parts of the machine which constitutes the preferred forni of the invention, as shown in the accompanying drawings and hereinafter described and claimed.

In4 the drawings, in Which like charactersy designate like parts in the several Views, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a brick machine constituting the preferred forni of the invention; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same, one side frame and parts associated therewith being shown in cross-section; Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the same, part of the bed being broken away andfone side frame and parts adjacent thereto being shown in cross-section on the center line of the main shaft; Fig. L1 is a longitudinal vertical section of the saine taken alongside of the middle plane of the machine; y and Figs. 5 to 9, inclusive, are partial views of the Working parts of the machine showing the relative 'in said slots.

positionsof the kplungers at successive stages in the operation yof pressing a'brick.

Referring tok Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, the frame of the machine consists of a bed plate or base 11, and side frame members 12 bolted 'to the base and connected at their upper front edges by a cross-brace 13. Each ofthe side frames consists of a horizontal bottom portion, a vertical pillar at the front, and a downwardly sloping back brace from the top of the pillar to the bottom portion.

The upper and lower end portions of the vertical pillars have vertical slots 14 therein, and the outer faces of said pillars are ribbed or channeledto increase their rigidity and strength and to serve as guideivays for the side links v15 hereinafter mentioned. Through the slots in the upper ends of the pillars extend the ends of a shaft 16, Which ends are flattened on the sides to fit and slide Journaled on this shaft 16 is the upper link 17 of a toggle-joint 18 Whose loiver link 19 is pivotally connected to a cross head 20. vThe ends of the cross head are arranged to fit and slide between vertical guides 21 provided therefor, Which are bolted on to the inner faces of the vertical pillars. rlhis cross head carries number of plungers 22, each of which is arranged to cooperate With a niold 23 provided therefor in a cross member or mold block 2-1 Which is supported at its ends on the side frame. The mold block 2-1 slides in horizontal grooves 25 on the inside faces of the side frames, and mayv be removed and replaced as desired. y

In the machine shoivn in the drawings,

there are four top plungers 22 and foury molds 23, arranged side by side in a. single row. The molds have slightly4 tapering sides, the length and Width of the molds being about an eighth of an inch greater at the top than at the bottom. The moldshave a considerably greater depth than the thickness of the bricks which they are designed' for making, so the difference in. size between f thetop and bottom faces of the bricks is inccnsiderable. T he molds are made to confoi-m near the bottoni to the desired size ofthe bricks,and at the tops they are slightly larger than the bricks. 'This shape enables the bricks to be readily ejected from the molds without injury. Y A

A bar 26 is pivotally connected to the tog- Igle joint 18 for actuating the toggles. This toggle actuating bar 26 is operatively connected at its other end to cam actuating mechanism. fln the preferred construction, as illustrated in Figs. 3 and ll, the end of the toggle actuating bar is bifurcated or slotted to lit over the main shaft 27 and a cap 28 isbolted over the end of the slot. Cam rollers' 29 are mounted on opposite sides of the bar at a point near its'slotted Y end, andv between the shaft andthe pivot of the toggle.' yTheselrollers .run in cam grooves in the opposing faces of two cams BO'that are fixed to said shaft 27 on opposite sides of the bar 26. The grooves of said cams are of an irregular shape resembling a heart, and are similar to and the reverse of each other. For about one quarter of a eircumference `each groove is a circular arc of greater radius than at any other portion of the cam; and consequently when the rollers are in this portion of the groove, the bar maintains the toggles bent, and the plun gers 22 are held in their uppermost position. A notch 31V is cut in the outer wall of this portion through which the rollers may be inserted and removed whenever the toggle actuating baris taken off of the cam shaft. At the endof this Vcircular portion, the cam groove has a short concave portion or cusp which first approaches half way tothe center and then recedes from the center to a radial distance less than the radius of the circular arc.A The remaining portion of the groove subtends an angle somewhat greater than 180 degrees, and is in the form of a yfiat conveX curve passing around and close to the center 'of the cam. By this arrangement, the middle of the flat convex curve portion of the groove is very close to the shaft, and when the rollers engage in this region a considerable angular travel of the cam produces a very slight longitudinal movement of the toggle actuating bar. The kparts are so proportioned that the cam rollers are closest to the cam shaft at the time when the toggle Vlevers are in alinement with each other,

' f which is the position of maximum pressure Veo on the brick.Y By this arrangement, aY most links form slides for guiding the lower cross head. Y f

The upper and lower portions of the outer faces of the side pillars are finished to constitute guideways 36 for the side links 15. These guideways are provided with adjust-V ably mounted wear plates 37, between which Vfit and slide the squared ends of the side links. Suitable cover plates 38 are removably mounted on'theouter facesof the upper ends of the pillars, and coperate with saidy guideways to hold the side links. The upper ends of these' links andof the cover plates have overlapping vertical slots 39, 4()- The ends of the pivot shaft rest in the` lower ends of the slots 40 in the cover plates in charging position of they mechanism, and y whenever the toggle-joint is ybent to raise the upper plungers from the molds. In the slot 39 at the upper end of each of the side links is a bearing block 41, which is secured in place lby means of nuts screwed on a screw stud 4-2 that is attached tothe bearing block and extends through the top end of the link. These bearing blocks constitute upper limit stops for the ends of the pivot shaft 16 of the upper toggle.k n the operation of the device, as the toggle links are straightened out by theV movement of the actuating bar, thev lower links move downwardly kwith the upper cross heads and plungers until further movement thereof. is resisted yby the clay. Further straightening of the toggle-joint causes the upper toggle link to move upwardly until its pivot shaft 16 bears against the upper bearing or limiting blocks 11, whereuponY the further straightening of the toggle-jointv simultaneously forces the lower cross head' upwardly and the upper cross head downwardly with 'l substantially equal force. VThe bearing blocks 4-1 can be removed and replaced with others of different thickness in order to ad- Vjust the spaces between .the plungers to conform tothe thicknessof 'the bricks. By this arrangement, the cross heads are jointly Vactuated by the actuating bar andtogglejoint, and are relatively adjustable without .affecting Y their normal vertical positions.

The actuating bar can lift the upper cross head without affecting the lower cross head,

and the side links can move upwardly and downwardly with said lower `cross head independently of the upperr cross head, for the purpose herein-after described.

The lower crossfhead 33 rests at the mid-I dle on a lever 43 which is mounted on a horizontal cross shaft lll provided therefor and supportedin the side frames. The

front end of said lever is adjustably supported and cushioned on springs provided for the purpose. The adjustment of the lever 43 is by means of a verticallyarranged screw i6 which is swiveled or stepped at its upper and lower ends in bearings 47 provided therefor on the front ofv the frame. A hand wheel 4:8 is secured to the screw for turning the same. A movable nut or block 49, which is held flatwise against the front of the frame `to prevent rotation, works up and down on the screw i6 and constitutes a vertically adjustable abutment for the springs 45 that support the end of the lever 43. By manipulating the screw, the lower cross head is positioned to support the bottom plungers 32 inthe lower ends of the molds at theV height corresponding to the desired capacity of the molds. rllh'e lower cross head rests on the adjusting lever only just before and during the operation of charging; hence this adjustment of the cross head support does not affect the position of the cross head and plungers during the several stages of compression.

The lower cross head is raised independently of the upper cross head by means of side levers 50 pivotally mounted on the ends of the cross shaft /l-l outside of the side frame. The fro-nt ends of the side levers 50 have slots 5]. within which engage the rollers 3ft on the ends of the lower cross head; The rollers and side levers are held in assembled position by means of washers 52 arranged on the ends of the crosshead and secured by wedge-shaped pins 53. The rear ends of. the side levers 50 are positioned below the extremities of the main shaft 27, and carry rollers 5lon their upper sides. The rollers are journaled in bearings on standards 55 which are removably mounted on the ends of the side levers by means of a bolt 56 secured to the under side of each standard and passing through a vertical hole in the end of the lever. Cams 57 are secured to the ends of the main shaft in position for their peripheries to engage the rollers 5&1. `which are adapted to roll thereon. Each cam has two projections which are shaped to depress the cam roller and thereby tilt the side lever twice during each revolution of the main shaft. The first projection 58 is a comparatively short one, and tilts vthe side lever through an angle such that the plungers on the lower cross head are raised about half way to the top of the molds and then lowered, with but a brief interval during which the cross head remains in raised position. The second projection 59, which is spacedabout a quarter turn behind the first, raises the lower cross head suliiciently to carry the bottom plungers to the tops of the molds, thereby ej ecting the bricks therefrom, and holds the cross head in raised position during a sufficient interval for the charging mechanism to discharge the bricks on the front table 60.

The cams 57 for raising the lower' cross head are timed with respect to thefcams 30 for actuating the toggle links in order to raise the lower cross head to eject the bricks concurrently with the withdrawal of the upper plungers from the molds. The lifting of the lower cross chead half way to the tops of the molds occurs simultaneously with the short reverse or upwardy movement of the upper cross head during its downward pressing stroke.

The chargingmechanism may be of any ordinary type. ln the construction illustrated, it comprises a front table 60 and a rear table 6l bolted to the side. frames flush `the bottom plungers are raised flush with the upper surface of the mold block and table,and to return the slide after t-he plungers have been lowered to their normal positions. Each of the bars 64C has a pin 67 projecting through its rear end and the two projecting ends of the pin are provided with rollers 68. One roller is arranged to engage the groove of the cam, and the other roller is arranged to engage the horizontal way or groove 65 formed in the inner face of the adjacent side of the frame. The charging slide cam 66 has a notch 69 in its outer wall through which the cam roller can be withdrawn without dismounting the cam and shaft 27 upon which it is secured.

The main or cam shaft 27 may ber actuated by any suitable mechanism. As illustrated in the accompanying drawing, the main shaft has a pair of large gears 70 fixed thereon, and these gears mesh with two pinions 71 mounted on an intermediate shaft 72 which is journaled at its ends in the side frame members.k carries a larger gear 73 which in turn meshes with a pinion 74 on a pulley shaft 75. This pulley shaft is provided with a belt pulley 76 which constitutes a means for transmitting power from a suitable source.

*In order to distribute stresses to the frame advantageously, it is preferable to arrange The intermediate shaft all of the gears, pinions, cams, and levers p symmetrically with respect to the side frame members. ln the construction illustrated, all

isa

the side links and levers and the cams for operating them are inside of the framework, thereby securing great compactness and minimizing the destructive tendencies of unbalanced pressures.

The operaticnof the' machine is as follows Starting with the parts in charging psition, as shownin Figs. al, 2 and 5, the charging-slide G3 having moved forward with sulicient powdered clay to fill the "molds, rotation of the main shaft Yin the direction ofthe arrow will retract the charging slide and partly straighten out theftog` gie-Joint. rlhe cams for operating the side levers are out of contact with the cam vrollers during the charging operation and rst part of the compressing operation. At this stage of the operation theiplungers charging slide occupy positions approximately as shown in'lig. 6, the bricksV being Y partly compressed and positioned near the the bricks to the outwardly Haring tops ofv the molds, as shown in Figs. 4: and 7, and

allowing any air confined therein to escapel readily from their sides. The upper cross head moves slightly farther than the lower, whereby the pressure on the bricks is released and the confined air can escape from the top and bottom faces also. Further. r0- tatien of the main shaft carries the projections 58 of the side cams past thel rollers and allows the lower cross head and plungers to drop. Simultaneously'therewith the toggle actuating cams straighten out the toggle-joint and compress the bricks to the desired thickness, thel side links causing the working pressure to be applied with `substantially equal force to both the top and bottom crossheads and plungers, as vshown in Fig. 8. VFurther rotation ofy the main yshaft bends the toggles and raises Vthe top cross head and plungers, andsimultaneously therewith the projections 59 of the side cams f depress the side levers and raise the lower cross head and plungers to eject the bricks7 as shown in Fig. 9. The circular or dwell portions of the toggle actuating cams and side cams' hold the plungers in the positions shown in Fig. 9 while the charging mechanism discharges the bricks and refills the molds withv clay.

F rom the foregoing it appearsthat in carrying out this invention, the operation .the top of the mold to full force of the press becomes effective inr compressing the brick; whereas if the entire compressive force had been exerted in one movement, :thefentrapped air would liaveveX- erted considerable resistance, and some of the airiwould have been trappedin the in- Yterstices of the clay and4 compressed. Unless air Vcon'ipressed in the interstices of the bricks is allowed time Yto escape before the pressure on the bricks is removed, there is considerable likelihood that the mass of clay kwill be disrupted by the pressure within upon the removal ofthe outside pressure. Such a result is entirely obviated by this invent-ion, which enables the speed o-f operation of the machine to be increased as far as safety will lpermit y'without' the bricks bursting open lwhen. they are discharged from the molds.

Obviously, the means lhereinbefore described for permitting the escape of the air prior to the final compression of the clay admits of considerable modification, and I do not wish to be restricted to said construction.

I claim the following as my invention:

l. A brick machine having a mold with Vopen top and bottoni, the top portion of Vthe side walls of said mold being formed to permit the escape of air, upper andlower movable plungers forming the top and bottom of said mold, means for causing said plungers to approach each other'torform a brick, and

means for retracting the Vupper plunger before the'complction of rthe working stroke and concurrently raising the lower plunger to a point short of tlie'top of the'mold, whereby the partly formed brick `israised to l allow the escape of imprisoned air. f o k2. A brick machinehaving 'a mold with open top and bottom, and `tapering walls slightly narrower at'tlie bottom than at the top, upper and lower' rmovable plungers forming the top and bottom ofV said mold, means for causing said pliingerstov approach each other to form a. brick, and means forpletion of the working stroke and concurthe mold to allow the Vescape of imprisoned Lu-* 3. In'combination in a brickfinachine, a

izo'

-retracting the upper plunger before the commold having open ends, one of which is larger than the other, oppositely facing plungers adapted to enter the ends oli' the mold to compress a brick between them, means for moving said plungers toward each other simultaneously, and means for relatively moving said plungers jointlywith respect to said mold during the compressing operation, whereby the brick is moved toward the larger end of the mold.

t. In combination in a brick machine, a mold having open ends, one of which is larger than the other, oppositely facing plungers adapted to enter the ends of the mold to compress a brick between them,

vmeans for moving said plungers toward each other simultaneously, and means for successively moving the brick iirst toward the larger end of the mold, and then toward the smaller end of the mold, during the compressing operation.

5. A brick machine comprising a frame, a mold supported in said frame, a toggle mounted in 'said frame, an upper plunger forming the top of said mold and connected to the lower end of said toggle, a lower plunger forming the bottom of said mold, links connecting the upper end of said toggle and said lower plunger, the upper end of each of said links being slotted, a support for the upper end of said toggle independent of said links, an actuating shaft, and a pitman directly connecting said shaft and the middle pivot of said toggle, said frame having vertically alining upper and lower guideways for the opposite ends of said links, and the lower plunger being fixed to the lower ends of the links and held in alinement thereby, said links and lower plunger being independently movable with respect to said frame and upper plunger, and means for operating said lower plunger independently of said upper plunger.

6. A brick machine comprising a frame having slotted side pillars, a mold mounted in said frame, 'a toggle mounted in said frame, an upper plunger forming the top of said mold and connected to the lower end of said toggle, a cross head having a lower plunger forming the bottom of said mold, slotted links outside of said frame connecting the upper end of said toggle and said cross head, said links being guided in said pillars at their lower ends, means for raising said cross head, and means for independently actuating said toggle, said Copies of cross head being adapted to be inserted through a slot in the pillar and having its ends secured to iit in squared holes provided therefor in said links whereby it is rigidly held and guided thereby.

7. A brick machine comprising side frames having horizontal grooves on the inner sides thereof, a mold mounted on said vframe adjacent to said horizontal grooves,

a transverse power shaft journaled on said frame, grooved cams iixed on said power shaft adjacent to each of said horizontal grooves in the side frames, a horizontally reciprocatable charger in cooperative relation to said mold, connecting bars operatively connected to said charger and interposed between said horizontal grooves in the side Jframesand said cams, and having oppositely disposed projections slid ably litted in the adjacent horizontal groove and cam groove, whereby said charger is intermittently reciprocated.

8. A brick machine comprising side frames, a mold mounted on said side frames, a horizontally reciprocatable charger mounted on said side frames in cooperative relation to said mold, said side frames having oppositely disposed parallel horizontal grooves on their inner sides, a transverse power shaft journaled on said side frames, continuously grooved cams mounted on said power shalt adjacent to the inner faces of said side frames, connecting bars secured at one end to said charger and having oppositely disposed transverse rollers mounted on their opposite ends and iitting respectively in the adjacent horizontal groove in the side frame and the adjacent cam groove.

9. A brick machine having a mold with open top and bottom and tapering walls slightly narrower at the bottom than at the top, upper and lower movable plungers forming the top and bottom of said mold, and means for operating said plungers.

10. A brick machine having a mold with open top and bottom and tapering walls, upper and lower movable plungers forming the top and bottom of said mold and movable up and down therein, and means for ojiierating said plungers.

Signed at St. Louis, Mo., this 7th day of August, 1914.

WALTER P. GRATH.

Vitnesse's A. M. HoLCoMBn, M. A` SHELTON.

this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

